Thursday, July 14, 2016

Goddess Fish Promotions: A Simple Vow

Housed
in a rustic red barn, the Simple Gifts crafts shop celebrates the
talents of the Amish of Willow Ridge—and the faith that inspires
them. For the acceptance of simplicity opens the path to love.

As
far as Edith Riehl is concerned, the baby twins thrust suddenly into
her arms are a heaven-sent gift. Unable to conceive, she longs to be
a mother with a home of her own. She’s going to abide by her
promise to handsome Asa Detweiler to take care of them while he looks
for their real father. And even if her domineering dat Cornelius
refuses to countenance Asa’s suit, she can only pray the bachelor’s
honesty and persistence will uncover the truth—even as he’s
kindled an impossible hope for a love of her own…

Asa can’t
understand why anyone would think he would be so dishonorable as to
father babies and then abandon them. He’s determined to clear his
name—but Edith’s caring ways also inspire him to help heal her
wounded spirit and earn her trust. In the face of heartbreaking
deception, he and Edith must find the strength to understand,
forgive…and claim their own hearts’ joy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

EXCERPT:

As the
middle-aged deacon put on his hat and strode toward the county
highway, his two daughters shook their heads. “Dat doesn’t spend
much time at weddings since our mamm passed on,” Rosalyn explained.
“And Edith did get herself into quite a pickle this morning.”

“Jah,
we were ready to walk over here for church,” Loretta continued,
“when we found her with a baby in each arm, telling us a mighty
peculiar story about how their dat had dropped them off because their
mamm had died—”

“And
meanwhile he was accusing another fellow of being the babies’
father,” Rosalyn added in an embarrassed whisper. “So it seems
we’re to look after these two helpless wee ones until their dat
returns.”

“If he
does—whichever man it is,” Loretta added with an exasperated
shrug. “It’s another one of those long stories best left for
another time.”

“Oh,
my,” Nora murmured as the folks around her began to whisper among
themselves. “I was wondering why I didn’t see Edith sitting with
you. She was so excited about helping at the wedding dinner.”

“The
little twins’ dinner—and dirty diapers—were a more immediate
concern,” Loretta replied wryly. “We can’t fault Edith for her
soft heart, but we’re wondering if she’s gotten herself into the
middle of a messy situation. I’m sure Dat’s going to ask her some
hard questions, and maybe insist that she return the babies to
Will—the fellow who brought them here.”

“It
doesn’t help that Will was once engaged to Loretta, or that Dat
made them break it off,” Rosalyn explained, smiling ruefully at her
sister.

“Sounds
like a matter we need to hold up in prayer, for all of you Riehls and
those babies, too,” Bishop Tom remarked. “The ladies here in town
will help with clothes and supplies, so don’t hesitate to let us
know what ya need.”

Tom and
the Riehl sisters made their way outside. The other guests, eager to
get to the Grill N Skillet, congratulated Nora and Luke in a steady
stream that soon cleared the house. As her husband closed the door
and clasped her hand, Nora chuckled. “Seems there’s more to our
new neighbors than meets the eye,” she said. “The Riehl sisters
are such nice girls—and they’ve mentioned that they make several
different craft items, which I’d like to sell in my store.
Apparently that Will fellow trusts them to look after his little
twins.”

“He’s
probably so overwhelmed by the prospect of caring for them that he
doesn’t know what else to do,” Luke replied. “If you had twins
and then passed on, I’d be—well, I’m not sure I’d survive,
Nora. You’re everything to me.”

“Oh,
Luke.” Nora stopped in the middle of the road to caress the brown
beard he’d been growing since they’d married five months ago. The
hitch in his voice had tugged hard at her heartstrings. “I’m
healthy as a horse, and I plan to be pestering you for a long, long
time. All right?”

“I
sure hope so.” A grin lit up his handsome face and he kissed her
quickly. “Although I’m enjoying this extended visit with our
family, I’m looking forward to when the relatives head back to
Pennsylvania so we have the house to ourselves again. Hear what I’m
saying?”

Nora
felt heat prickle her cheeks as she smiled up at him. “Loud and
clear, Mr. Hooley.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Review: I love Charlotte Hubbard. I think I've read almost all of her books. A Simple Vow is the first book in the Simple Gifts series. Its a bit of a continuation of her last series Seasons of the Heart, but this type of series is one where all the books are stand alone novels, you just get to revisit characters you've met before.

In this book Edith finds herself taking care of twins. The reason they are in her care is really bizarre and it starts the mystery that carries through the whole novel. That's part of why I love Charlotte's books, there's always a little more going on that meets the eye.

There are so many wonderful characters here, some new, and some that you've met before if you've read her previous book. This story felt like coming home to me because her stories make you feel like you are visiting with relatives and friends.

If you are fan of Amish fiction you really need to give Charlotte's books a try. You won't regret it.

RATING: 5 stars

AUTHOR
Bio and Links:

Many
moons ago—like, in 1983 while she was still a school
librarian—Charlotte Hubbard sold her first story to True Story.
This launched her into writing around seventy of those “true
confessions” stories over the years, and she’s been a slave to
her overactive imagination ever since. Over the course of her writing
career, she has sold nearly 50 books—most recently, Amish romance
series she’s written as Charlotte Hubbard or Naomi King.

Charlotte
lived in Missouri for most of her life, so her Amish stories are set
in imaginary Missouri towns. These days she lives in St. Paul, MN
with her husband of 40+ years and their Border collie, Ramona.

Becky, I did most of my Amish research in Jamesport, MO when I was first starting to write these books--and now I have a good friend who lives there, and if I have questions I can email her and she will ask the local Amish folks, and then send me their answers. Thanks for asking!